Halfway Valentine
by IAmNotSam
Summary: Emily Fitch, a student from University of Bristol, won a student exchange scholarship to one of Japan's most prestigious universities, Hamada University in Kyoto. There, she met a bunch of people from all corners of the world and a strikingly beautiful Aussie who would soon turn her life around. Naomily AU
1. Halfway Valentine: Author's Note

**Dear Reader:**

Since I'm on a vacation and currently paralysed in my room because of a sprained ankle, and was inspired by a lot of things around me, and, yes, due to the "_A Fight for Ranger and Blondie_" movement some readers started, I thought of spoiling you with just one-shot, one-scene incredibly fluffy **Naomily bits** during their stay in Japan. The "_Sappily Ever After . . ._" series. Hope you guys like it.

It's **sappy**. And **smutty**. And** fluffy**. And just sprinkled with a lot of **passion** from our lovely heroines. You have been warned.

To check out the story and the **Naomily (Sappily Ever After . . .) Special** series, just visit: **xoxiamnotsam[dot]blogspot[dot]com **or simply _Google_** Halfway Valentine**

* * *

Cheers!

**xOxIANS**

******Website: xoxiamnotsam[dot]blogspot[dot]com**


	2. Halfway Valentine: Hideaway

"**Hideaway****"**

**I** woke up slowly, stretching deliciously, aware of only how warm and comfortable I was. I half opened one eye. It took me a moment to remember where I was. Back in Kyoto, the swanky Fukuda International House, the couple of single beds we'd joined together, Naomi and our cosy little room.

Back in the place where we were almost a year ago—but still very much together. I let the fresh memories from last night roll over me. The stories we'd told. The kisses we'd shared. Especially the kisses. And more kisses . . . I could still feel her lips on mine.

I yawned and opened the other eye too. The sky outside our room window was the brilliant blue of morning. The rain had stopped. A bird let out a single high, sweet note. I could smell freshly brewed coffee wafting in from the hallway outside. It was a beautiful spring day.

I looked down at the soft, milky skin wrapped around my upper body. I was in Naomi's arms, nestled spoon-style, my back to her chest. The blonde snuggled even closer, under the shared shelter of a comforter, not ready to give up the powerful feeling of complete contentment and tenderness.

I gave a contented sigh, rolled over and looked at the girl who was surprisingly wide awake beside me.

"Good morning, Sleeping Beauty," Naomi sweetly greeted, gazing into my eyes. "Good sleep?"

The answer to this question was pretty obvious. Put me anywhere next to Naomi Campbell and I'm on cloud nine. I cast her a long glance. Bright blue eyes, slender nose, rosy lips, flawless face. Sun-streaked blond hair. Strikingly beautiful. And smart. Passionate. Witty. Sappy. My girlfriend, and the girl I'd been dreaming about for . . . well, for a long, long time. Afraid to even admit before I'd been dreaming about her because I'd wanted her so badly.

And finally she'd returned my feelings. The kisses we'd shared, all of it, still burned in my mind. The softness and sweetness of her lips on mine. Her magical fingers stroking my face. The way we'd drunk each other in, as if we couldn't possibly get close enough. As if we never, ever wanted to stop. My cheeks got warm just thinking about it. Everything's just incredible. My thoughts caused a swarm of bees in my tummy and I couldn't help but smile at the wonderful feeling.

"What?" the blonde asked, studying my face. "So it's good?"

"More than good," I answered finally. "You know you should quit popping into my dreams. It's kind of annoying."

"Annoying, eh?"

"You always look so bloody scrumptious, I couldn't stop myself from drooling. Look at this." I wiped the corners of my mouth with a hand. "Eurgh."

She chuckled softly. "Well, that makes the two of us 'cos you look so irresistible sleeping." She dropped a soft kiss on the tip of my nose. A wide smile curved my lips at the sweetness of her gesture.

"I used you as a model. I hope you don't mind." Naomi released me and reached for her digital SLR camera from the bedside table.

I felt my cheeks colour. "You did? When I was sleeping?"

"I know I should've asked you, but then I would have to wake you up," Naomi said, grinning sheepishly. "And you looked so comfortable and—asleep."

"Snoring?" I asked with a little grimace. "And with morning glory." I rubbed the sleep from my eyes.

Naomi laughed. "Not at all, babe. You looked incredibly lovely and peaceful. That's why I couldn't resist."

"Well, how'd it turn out?"

Naomi smiled and gave a little shrug. "I know I'm no pro yet at photography but I made sure you had all the lighting and shadow necessary." She turned the camera on, pushed the _Playback_ button, and browsed the images. She showed me one photo. "It took me three tries before I did you justice. You looked so . . . serene. I had to get the effect fluid and soft enough."

I blinked and rubbed my eyes once more. I studied the picture Naomi had taken on the camera's LCD screen. It was beautiful. I was beautiful, at least through the lens and Naomi's eyes.

"Like it?" she asked. "I'll have it developed and framed."

"More than like. Naomi, this is wonderful. You're really good. If I look like this when I'm asleep, I'm never going to wake up again." I gave a happily embarrassed laugh.

"Nah, that'd be too bad," Naomi said lightly, putting the camera back on the table. "I kind of like you when you're awake, too." She had that wicked little grin on her beautiful face.

I cocked a brow. "Ah, yea? Why's that?"

"Because I like it when you sweet-talk me and when you get a bit sneaky."

"Like this?" I murmured, snaking a teasing hand underneath Naomi's T-shirt. My fingers danced on her bare back. "Your skin is so delectable," I whispered, and she let out a blissful little moan.

She regarded me from above her lashes. "Fitch, you are in so much trouble now—"

"Emily Fitch! Naomi Campbell!"

Our hearts jumped a little to the sound of our names being called. "Seems like you are, too," I said, smirking. "Uh-oh. What now?"

"Fitch-san!" called a voice outside.

"Campbell-san!" yelled another.

I didn't recognise either of the voices. "I guess they're playing our song," I said quietly.

She cupped my face in one hand. "I guess," she answered. Neither of us moved.

"Can't believe we still have fucking Yoshida-sans here," I said, with a little scowl. "God, what is their problem?"

Naomi laughed softly. "Looks a little more like home sweet boarding school, eh?"

She looked especially beautiful when she was laughing.

I laughed too. A laugh that was soon cut off by a knock on the door. "Miss Fitch? Miss Campbell?" the same old lady called.

My eyes widened as awareness dawned. "What time is it?"

Naomi glanced behind her briefly, then turned back to me. "Quarter to ten."

"Naomi!" I gasped. "We have the orientation downstairs!"

"Shhh." She kissed me gently, tenderly on the temple. "We can skip it."

"It's at 9:30," I went on. "We're late. Naomi—"

"We could stay really, really quiet and maybe they'll go away," Naomi suggested, her fingers toying with the hem of my tank top.

I sighed. "Naomi, we are going to spend our lives together here in this room for a _very_ long time. What is a couple of hours of going out and adding points to our social life-metre, yea?" But I didn't make the slightest move to respond to the voices outside.

"We don't need anybody to bail us out. I brought chocolates and tofu and a takoyaki pan. We'll forage for veggies and berries in the garden outside. Catch fish in the mini pond. Learn to rub two sticks together," she joked.

I smiled. "Nice movie moment."

"Yea. Romamtic, isn't it," Naomi agreed. "Like in the movie _Cast Away_."

My smile faded into a frown. "That was tragic, though, Naomi. A very hairy Tom Hanks and that bloody—and I mean, literally bloody—ball named Wilson. It was a heartbreaking good-bye scene between the two."

"But you can't say it wasn't sweet while it lasted, yea?" She smiled at me.

A tiny smile curved my mouth again. "Yea, they really loved each other. Stood by each other through thick and thin." I then shrugged off the comforter and sat up. "But, seriously, we have to attend this orientation, Naomes."

The knocking on the door was getting louder. "Emily Fitch! Are you there? Miss Campbell?"

Oz stirred in his cage. I screwed my eyes shut and crossed my fingers, hoping that the Westie wouldn't be making any noise. I wasn't entirely sure if we were allowed to bring pets in our dorm room. At least, I was certain it wasn't indicated in the pre-arrival guide and in the house rules posted on the bulletin board in the lobby. Luckily, the puppy only rolled over and went on sleeping.

Letting out a breath of relief, I swung my legs off the bed and got up but fell back down onto the bed with the blonde's hand tugging the waistband of my girl boxers. I let out a little squeal and giggled as Naomi trapped me back in her arms.

"Stay with me here, my redheaded princess," she whispered in my ear. "Just you and me in our little hideaway."

The fading footsteps meant that the people outside had already left us in peace.

I giggled again. "But first we make a little trip to IKEA. A comfy couch would be really nice."

"Not a bad idea. And since we already have a laptop with a well-functioning DVD drive in the room, maybe we can drop by Tsutaya and rent a couple of DVDs. You know, the three you'd most want to bring if you were stranded in a deserted island? Tough to narrow it down, though. Let's see . . ."

"And maybe we can forget uni altogether and just spend the rest of our days on this nice, big bed."

She pursed her lips. "We have to go out, though, 'cos we need to shower."

"Or maybe we don't have to. I love the smell and taste of your sweat," I said, brushing my nose and lips lightly on the side of her neck. "Especially when it's mixed with rainwater. It's tangy but sweet tangy."

Naomi drew back, scowling. "Ew."

"I'm not kidding. I love it."

"Ems, if you think that's sweet talking, I'm telling you now, I ain't flattered at all."

I laughed, then tried to push myself up to sitting up again but the blonde's arms stayed me.

"Naomi, I'm serious," I said soberly. "We have to go downstairs. I don't want the dorm managers to think this early that we're the desperados in this town."

She ran her fingers through my scarlet waves. "Where was that feisty little redhead who told me she likes to live dangerously?"

"Naomi, you're making this difficult for me." My eyes slowly closed and I shuddered at her sweet voice and soothing caress.

"Let's just stay here," she murmured, leaning forward to press a kiss on the ticklish spot just below my ear. "Please?" she asked so softly, and I melted all the more.

The room phone rang. My eyes flew open.

"Do I have to get that?" Naomi asked, her hand in my hair, her lips near my ear. We heard the phone ring again.

"Yes."

"Forget it." With that, she flung the comforter above our heads, and levered herself on top of me. She dropped kisses along the side of my neck.

"You're really making this bloody difficult for me," I mock scolded her.

"That's what I'm here for, babe." She grinned, then her mouth dived to capture my lips.

With a soft sigh, my lids fluttered closed for a second time, and I gave in to my own desire. "You win . . . this time," I whispered into her mouth.

Her lips curled up in silent answer.

Then her mouth tenderly rubbed against mine, stroking the outline of my lips until I shivered from the sweetness of it all.

Moments later the phone began a second insistent ringing. Naomi let out a grunt and I said, "Someone wants us pretty badly."

She rested her head back on her pillow. "There's like a hundred of us in this dorm. They wouldn't mind," she said with an unconcerned shrug of her shoulders.

"Naomi, there's a whole world out there," I said with a long sigh.

Naomi took the comforter off our heads then looked into my eyes. "Okay, then. Are you really ready to go out into the whole new world, Emily?" she asked, holding my gaze and her mesmeric azure eyes easily clinched it for me.

I moved my head, pressed my cheek against the warmth of her chest, and squeezed my eyes closed. "Not really," I breathed. "We can stay here."

A contented smile tugged at my mouth as Naomi kept on lovingly stroking my hair with a hand. Wherever everyone else was, we were where we wanted to be.


	3. Halfway Valentine: Little Light Up

"**Little Light Up****"**

"**D**on't you just love summer nights?" I said, throwing one arm around Naomi's waist as we reached our favourite tree. Early-dried leaves and fallen blossoms rustled with our footsteps. She smiled her agreement down at me and dropped a sweet kiss onto my forehead. We both knew I wasn't lying. The night wind blowing around the bank of Kamo River, mixed with the scent of late-summer blooms was terrifically delicious.

The two of us grabbed both ends of an old blanket—the one used by the gang during our little parties once upon a time—and let it float down onto the lush grass underneath our Weeping willow tree. Along the riverbanks, families and couples who had the same idea for a nocturnal picnic had spread out as well. It was the _Gozan Okuribi_ Bonfire Festival, a well-known summer event in Kyoto. Five giant bonfires would be lit on the slopes of five mountains surrounding the city. However from the banks of Kamo River the only bonfire we would be able to witness was the Daimonji—the most famous of all fires, portraying the kanji or Chinese character _dai_ **大** meaning 'large'—on Mt. Daimonji.

Naomi and I decided to pop in an hour earlier. The bonfire was expected to be lit at exactly eight o'clock in the evening and so we waited, sitting together under the low leafy boughs of our tree. The scrumptious aromas of barbeque and Japanese rice wine wafted by on the summer breeze. The dimness around us made our tiny spot seem more peaceful, more intimate, more _ours_.

Naomi's arms came around me from behind in a comforting hug, and I let myself melt back against her warmth. "Our first Daimonji together," I said quietly, my fingers mindlessly toying with the bracelet I gave her. "Sweet."

The blonde planted a soft kiss on my temple. "Yea, I love it," she softly said, grazing her chin on my shoulder. "My first one was crappy 'cos you weren't there. We were only on the rooftop and drinking our faces off. I don't even remember seeing the bonfires. So I'll call this my first time, if it's okay with you," she said, borrowing my words.

I smiled. "Of course."

"You hungry?"

"Not really. Just thirsty."

"Good. Because if you were hungry, I'd have to go dive into that murky river and wrestle with the birds for some freshwater fish." She reached for her canvas bag and took out a pack of familiar biscuits. "I only have Garibaldis with me. Jess and Misaki are bringing the food."

I shone her a tiny, flattered smile. "Your heroism is greatly appreciated, Lady Campbell. But, really, I just need a drink."

She snaked her hands inside the bag and took out a couple of bottles. "So I got us Chartreuse and Russian vodka. Which one do you want, Ems?"

"Let's start with our favourite."

"Vodka, it is." Naomi uncapped the bottle then handed it to me. "I think that soy sauce stain is from last year's rooftop picnic." She pointed to a dark spot on the blanket.

I took a swig from the bottle, then stretched out on the blanket, resting my head in Naomi's lap. "Yep. Sean eats like he's fucking toothless. He's just a big baby. A big messy baby." For some bizarre reason, Naomi and I both lifted our faces to the soothing crescent moon at the same time. Through the swinging slender branches and narrow leaves, it looked as if it were smiling down at us. The stars seemed friendly, too. The night wind against my face felt glorious. The swaying of the willowy branches was somewhat rhythmic. The sound of rushing stream of water was like a lulling song.

I let out a sigh of contentment.

"Mmm. I know what you mean, Em," Naomi said, taking a calming sip of vodka. She then took out her camera from her bag and started taking photos of me.

Wincing at the continuous flashing of light, I shielded my eyes with the back of my hand. "Naomi, please tell me you do realise your camera is overflowing with images of my hideous face."

"You're my official model," she said, leaning over me now. "And for your information, your face is not hideous."

I tilted my head back to see her better. She had that playful, gorgeous smirk on her lips, making me want to kiss her so badly. She held her camera and started clicking again.

I gently pushed her camera away from her lovely face. We held each other's gaze for a moment until we both burst out giggling for some unknown reason.

"What?" I asked, with quizzical brows.

Naomi laughed out loud. "I was about to ask you the same thing, you twat." She playfully pinched my nose.

I laughed too. "You're so beautiful. I wanted to kiss you."

She arched her brows. "You don't want to kiss me now?"

"Come here, my queen." I curved my hands around her neck and drew her down to me for a sweet kiss.

I picked up a fallen camellia blossom that drifted onto the blanket and tucked it over her ear. "It's your turn." I grabbed the camera from her hands and aimed it to her. "C'mon, babe, show me your excellent modeling skills."

Naomi did—making a combination of funny, sweet, and sexy facial expressions in front of the lens. And she looked so cute and ridiculous, I kept laughing behind the camera.

I pushed the _Playback_ button of the camera and browsed the images on the LCD screen. Naomi kept silently drinking from the bottle.

"It's funny," I said, staring at an image of the sunrise taken from Mount Fuji. "Right before it comes up, the sun looks exactly the way it does after it sets. I mean, I'm looking at it now and if I weren't there with you when you took this, I wouldn't have any idea if it was coming or going." I showed the picture to her. "But somehow I always like to believe it's sunrise. A new day, you know?"

Naomi stared at the photo thoughtfully. "It's just one of those things in life wherein you're being presented with something, but it's just up to you which 'truth' you would like to believe in. And most of the time, people would settle for the better option."

"Because it's so much easier, so much safer, so much nicer?"

"Exactly," she said. "It's a little more like fooling yourself, but you can't blame people for always wanting to go for the less harsh truth." She gave a lopsided smile. "But, yea, pictures could be really deceiving nowadays. There's Photoshop, you know."

"Oh, that's the ridiculous bit right there," I said, smirking. "Now you can tell your grandchildren you've danced next to Michael Jackson, sipped champagne on a yacht with Lady Gaga in Niagara Falls, had tea with the Queen in one of the chambers of the Great Pyramid of Giza. You can do just about anything. Fancy just about anything."

"Still," she pointed out, "warping reality."

"People could be extremely delusional," I agreed quietly. Then I looked at her, with an impressed smirk. "You make a girl think, Naomi."

"Yea? Is that a good thing?"

I let out a laugh. "Sure. It's always a good sign when someone's interested in stimulating your brain and not just your," I hesitated, "you know."

"You know me, Emily," the blonde said. "I was never after your," her gaze slid down my waist inadvertently, "'you know.'"

Smirking, I rose to a sitting position. "Ah, no?"

She shook her head. "No."

"Okay," I said, raising a challenging brow. "Well, what were you after, then?"

Naomi pensively stared at the silently flowing river in front of us when she spoke. "The way you make me feel," she softly answered at length. "The incredible way you could change me. The better person you make me want to be." She looked at me then, her eyes mirroring the sincerity her words held. Then letting it go to look out at the quiet river again, she went on, "You know, I thought being all by yourself for a while would do it. I tried to save myself from that fast-approaching crash, thinking that I needed to be alone to help me find myself. But it was inevitable. Falling in love with you was just inescapable. When I decided to take the plunge with you, I realised it was the best risk I've ever taken in my life. I saw myself really facing myself, you know." She looked into my eyes then, holding my gaze. A surge of affection swelled my rib cage at her fragility. "I got to take a good look at myself and figured out what I liked about who I was and what I didn't, and where I wanted to go. All with you. All because of your help, Emily. All because of your love."

I just looked at her for a long, silent moment and took in her serious, sensitive face. I was sure Naomi was grateful for the darkness, because she knew she was blushing as her own words came back to her.

After a moment during which I had to blink against a sudden stinging behind my eyelids, I reached out and lifted her chin with a gentle finger.

"No one," I said softly, "has ever said such a lovely thing to me like that before. You are amazing, Naomi Campbell."

Her eyes widened, and her lips parted for a quick breath. I resisted the urge to kiss her right then and there, although it was bloody difficult. She looked a little dizzy and was flushing so horribly.

But to shake off her daze, Naomi strove for a speck of humour. "Once again that was Corny Campbell, Ladies and Gentlemen." She gave a little embarrassed laugh. "Feel free to ignore that."

I smiled and looked into her twinkling blue eyes. "Seriously, you're wonderful, Naomi. I don't know how many times I would have to echo my words, but it's just what you are. At least, through my eyes."

"And you are a master sweet-talker, Emily Fitch," she added lightly. We held each other's gaze wordlessly for a while until Naomi felt herself give a little start and moved to reach for her bag again.

"We could have our own little light up here. I brought tiny scented candles." She took out about a bunch of them, placed them in front us on the grass in a cute heart shape, and we lit each of them up.

After we were done with the candles, I leant toward her and kissed her just below her ear. "I love you," I murmured against her skin. "You're so gay."

She let out a giggle. "I know."

I drew back and gave her a grim look. "But don't get too close to me, babe," I warned, "or I might not be able to contain myself. Jess, Misaki and Oz will be here any moment. And you know Oz. He's a jealous little dog."

"Yea. We can't risk it," she agreed, pursing her lips. "So here . . ." She started to unbuckle her belt, and my eyes instantly bulged in surprise. I wanted nothing better than to see her naked in front of me, but not here, in public, surrounded by strangers—was she crazy?

She stretched the belt into a straight line between us on the blanket. "There's a demarcation line," she declared. "You can't go beyond this border, 'kay?"

I stared at her. "Um. How old are you, Naomi?"

"Piss off. I'm trying to be precautious. It's a mature thing to do, in fact."

A snort of a chuckle escaped me. "Yea. _Very_ mature."

The tiny flames were slowly licking at the candle wicks, and I could feel the delicious warmth on my face, could smell the delightful blended fragrance. She bit her lip, then traced the spot with her tongue. My pulse leapt immediately into overdrive. I really wanted to kiss her. But I knew if I did, we would end up doing things under our tree that you usually left behind in your teenage years.

I might have stiffened with desire as Naomi studied me with a worried gaze. "You all right, Ems?"

"No," I said abruptly. "You scare me."

"I scare you?"

"You're dangerous, Campbell. Don't get too close."

"Oh." Naomi's eyes were seductively staring into mine, stripping off layer after layer of my defence. "I'm thinking about the feel of your soft lips on my neck," she husked. "You brushing them back and forth against my skin until you reach the base and—"

"Naomi, stop," I ground out between my teeth, trying to fight off the teenage boys wanting to escape from my shorts. "You're making it fucking difficult for me."

Grazing her chin over her shoulder as she looked at me, she murmured, "I miss you already."

The softness of her voice sent shivers down my spine. For a long moment I couldn't get enough breath to speak. And looking at her only made it worse. I saw the flare of heat in her eyes.

I realised, with a little surprise, that after all this time I still got a case of weak knees whenever I was close to Naomi Campbell. I tore my eyes from her and stared down at my sweating hands. "Fuck's sake, Naomi. You're making it bloody harder than it is."

The blonde leant a little closer, careful not to go beyond her self-imposed 'demarcation line,' and lowered her voice. "Just how dangerous do you think I am?"

I lifted my gaze to her face again and saw the heat glowing in her eyes. "Dangerously dangerous."

Leaning back on her elbows, Naomi stretched her legs on the blanket. "I can't do anything about it," she said with Campbell cockiness, borrowing my words again.

I only let out a quiet giggle in response.

She looked wistfully at the silently flowing water in front of us, something like a smile on her face. "Do you remember last year? When you took me here on my birthday?"

A smile curved my mouth too. "Yea, you were such a pain in the arse. Complaining about every damn thing along the way."

She let out a chuckle. "I'm sorry, but you tied the bandanna so fucking tightly," she said. "It really did hurt."

"I had to because you were so sneaky and impatient."

"But it was really sweet," Naomi said, smiling. "Such a night to remember. That moment was right up there in my Top 3 Birthday Presents Ever Received."

"Yea. Good thing your birthday was during the _hanami _season. The lovely cherry blossoms raining over us, the sound of gushing water, strings, harps—okay, there were no actual strings and harps but I swear I heard them in the background," I added, and she chuckled, ". . . the soothing spring breeze . . ." I let out another sigh. "It was magical."

"We had a lot of epic memories here under our tree," she said softly, staring thoughtfully at the lit candles. "Strangely enough, this is the very same spot where we made that promise to make epic memories together, yea?" She sat up then, and turned her head to look at me.

I was intensely aware of her closeness. I could see tiny flecks of gold in her eyes.

"Yes," I said huskily, slowly leaning toward her. "So fuck this demarcation line, I'm going to kiss you." Throwing the belt into the air, I pulled her into my arms and took her mouth. She let out a little gasp of surprise before letting herself fall captive under my passionate lips.

I wasn't sure how I ended up lying on the blanket beneath Naomi, but I was there. And the fierce blonde was on top of me, balanced on her arms, her mouth attacking my neck. A shudder rippled through me at the idea that I just drive this strikingly beautiful blonde _this_ crazy. She seemed to feel it, because she lifted her head, looking at me.

I felt bereft, already missing the sultry heat of her mouth. That made me think of that day under this very same tree, the aftermath of her proposal to me to become officially hers, and wished we could re-enact the scene, right here, right now . . .

"How long do you think until that bonfire's gonna be lit up?" she asked, her voice thick.

It took me a moment to fight through the golden haze and realise what she meant. When I realised why she was asking, that she apparently had every intention of fulfilling the wish I'd just silently made, my breath left me in a rush, it was as if she read my mind.

Right here, right now. _Seriously?_

Naomi took my mouth again. A sizzling tingle raced along my every nerve at the feel of her warm, soft lips rubbing against mine.

"Fuck, Naomi," I said, a little out of breath when she freed my mouth. "Looking at your pig shirt makes me want to tear it off you. That's supposed to stay in the bedroom."

"I'll make it easier for you." In only an instant, Naomi got rid of her shirt. I let out a gasp at the feel of more of her smooth skin. Then her hands traveled down, unbuttoning my grey wool shorts. Within seconds, the dangerously dangerous blonde had managed to peel it off me.

It was a long time before the absurdity of it hit me; here we were, during one of this city's most-awaited event, in the middle of downtown, the most public place possible, making-out like a couple of teenagers with no place else to go. It was even a miracle that no one had come upon us, not even a police car. But I couldn't risk it.

I gently shoved against her shoulders as she continued to feast on my neck. "Not here, Naomes."

But she only stayed me, her mouth even fiercer. "Shh. Shut up and just let me—"

My eyes flew open just as some neon mystery object came whizzing by. I followed its trajectory. It smashed into the branches of our willow tree then fell down hitting the back of Naomi's head.

_**Thump.**_

It was a glow-in-the dark Frisbee.

"Ow!" Naomi finally pulled back, scowling in pain. "Fuck's sake!" She levered herself off of me to a sitting position, then went stroking her head.

I sat up and broke into a fit of giggles, making her glower all the more. God, was she cute.

Naomi took the Frisbee from the ground, glared at it, then got to her feet. She was only in her blue bra and denim shorts. I looked up at her and couldn't stop a smile from curving my mouth. She was so incredibly sexy.

Soon after, a shadow of a boy appeared, running toward us. My eyes bulged in alarm. "Shit, shit, shit, shit. Someone's coming. Take cover!" I reached for my shorts but was too late to try and put it on. The boy was only a few running steps away.

Naomi dashed toward the tree trunk and hid behind it. Realising that I was still underdressed, I hastily tugged at the blanket underneath me and wrapped it around my lower body, making the bottles and our bags tumble and knock a few candles.

All of a sudden a tiny fire started. In a tick, it whooshed to a giant flame with much help from the dried leaves on the ground.

"Omigod, omigod, omigod." I jumped to my feet on trembling knees, but only stared at the raging flames in dread. "Fire!" I half-shrieked.

Frantically I looked around for something that could snuff the fire out, anything. But there was nothing but just the water in the river that I could draw using a pitcher or a bucket. Except there was no fucking pitcher nor bucket.

"Hey, kid," Naomi called tightly from behind the trunk, "it's already late to go playing outside. Go home." She threw the Frisbee back to the bewildered boy who was also staring at the dancing bonfire. He might not be able to understand English but the blonde's sharp eyes did it for him. "Haven't you heard of the _Kuchisake-onna_?"

The boy's eyes widened with horror at Naomi's last word, and he whirled and took off right away. As soon as the boy was out of sight, Naomi came out. I glanced at her, and there was not a trace of the fear I was feeling.

In panic, I took a bottle from the ground and poured its contents onto the fire, but the flame got even higher. I nearly gasped aloud as I shook with fear_. Shit, shit, shit_.

Naomi's quick, aggressive hands took the blanket off of me and smacked the fire off with it. Shortly, the flames had been successfully put out. I felt a great weight had been lifted off my chest. Thanks, again, to my knight in shining armour.

The blonde moved toward me and slung her arm over my shoulder. "Well done, Ems," she mocked, watching the spiraling smoke. "Now, that was what you really call our little light up."

I only grinned up at her sheepishly. God, I was proper fool, all right.

"And, Emily," Naomi snatched the empty bottle from my hand, "who is this misguided idiot who taught you that fire could be extinguished by alcohol?"

"I'm sorry, I panicked," I said simply. She chucked the vodka bottle down to the ground, and we both burst into fits of laughter.

Helpless with laughter, I staggered toward the tree and leant weakly against its trunk. Almost breathless from laughing, Naomi came over to me. One arm propped against the trunk just a little over my shoulder, she rested her forehead against mine as we both convulsed with giggles. The moment was ridiculous. We were ridiculous.

Suddenly the blonde's giggling came to a halt and she stared. I stared back. She drew her head back slightly to look at my face. The impassioned yearning in her blue eyes burned into me, igniting the kindling of my own desire. And the sight of the deep cleft between her breasts pushed up by her silky bra only stirred things up.

"Maybe we should put our clothes back on," I said lamely.

"Yea, maybe we should," she agreed without conviction, watching the movement of my lips. Her proximity made the exotic scent of her skin much more irresistible.

"I like your lotion today," I said, a little breathless.

"Thank you," she said absently. She was busy studying my throat. "It has cocobolo wood."

"Oh, fuck it." I grabbed her wrist and tugged her toward the back of the tree. "Over here."

We slid down against the trunk, giggling like little girls. Sitting with my back resting on the mossy trunk, Naomi knelt in front on me. She held my face between her palms and drew it close to hers. "Emily, I love you. Jesus, you drive me crazy." Her sweet, hot breath struck my lips. "It's just inevitable."

"I know." Feverishly my mouth sought hers and fused with it. As she pressed, I slipped my arms around her neck, knowing I was going to need her strength; when she kissed me, mine seemed to vanish.

I trembled as she deepened the kiss, tasting, probing, urging. And I responded, kissing her back, wanting more of her sweetness. And more, and more.

Naomi slid her hands under my grey shirt and moved them up and down my back, fiercely, to my hips. She pulled me against her, and I nearly gasped aloud at her vehement hunger. It was as if she couldn't get enough. And this caused a delicious shudder rippling through me. It was my turn to put an end to one of my cravings and so I slipped my hands under her bra. Naomi's soft moan felt like a caress against my mouth.

At first I thought the blinking red lights were only a product of my fevered imagination. But then I heard a gruff male voice talking into his radio. Simultaneously we realised that the lights were from a police car parked just behind the bushes. _A police car._ Fate must be pulling a fucking prank on us.

A flashlight was flicked on just above our heads, then it was sent sweeping over the dark space just in front of our willow tree. Thankfully, the smoke had died down.

We froze—with my hands still on her breasts, hers firm on my hips—and tried not to make a single sound on the spot. Naomi was precariously shaking with silent laughter that I had to remove one hand from under her bra to put it over her mouth, and glared at her.

"Everything seems to be in control here. Over," the policeman was saying in Japanese. "No. No fire whatsoever. Maybe this is just some kid's idea of a practical joke . . ."

The police car left and the two of us instantly picked up where we left off. I moved my hands and ran them up and down her back, drinking in the feel of her. That skin, soft as a butterfly's breath, smooth as wine and twice as intoxicating; I could drown in her skin. I bent a little and began to kiss whatever skin I could reach. I ran my tongue around the little indentation where the collar bones meet just above the silver heart pendant of her necklace. Her hands continued to explore my body, a couple of clever fingers exploring the rolled waistband of my panties. Naomi paused for a moment when a group of noisy Japanese teens on their bicycles passed by. And I almost cried out my irritation with all the bloody interruptions. _Fuck's sake._ I was dizzy with desire already.

As soon as they were gone, Naomi and I took it up again. With our mouths not leaving each other, we scrambled awkwardly across the grass toward the evergreen bushes to hide ourselves further. It was late-summer and the camellia bushes along the esplanade were in full bloom, the air heavy with the scent.

"Ah, Jesus," Naomi moaned against my lips, our unquenchable thirst for each other driving us to insanity. We rustled through the hedge plants and my back prickled as the blonde pressed me backward into a huge camellia bush. My thighs ached with strain. But pleasure overshadowed pain. Overbloomed pink petals shook loose and fell over us. I was intoxicated with the smell of Naomi's skin and the scent of camellias. Burying her face in the side of my neck, Naomi ran her hands down under the waistband of my panties to curve them on my butt and draw me against her. My grip was firm on the back of her neck. Her teeth dug into the sensitive skin of my neck and I was certain she left a mark there.

I felt her legs pressing between my own, easing them farther apart, as we sank further down into the bush. It was already half crushed beneath me. I was going crazy, not wanting her to ever stop but hungry to feel her magic inside me.

We grabbed hold closer and closer, kissing, squeezing, rubbing, kneading skin into flesh. Crablike I clutched her, and we rolled over the bushes. I let out a little squeal; she laughed. Tumbling over tiny red blooms, Naomi pushed me hard down—almost harshly—against a wild shrub, the weight of her chest pinning me. I felt spiky twigs pierce my back, stinging me.

"Ow!" I squeaked, and found out I was resting on a Japanese flowering quince. A fucking spiny shrub.

With her arms still around my waist, Naomi stopped and pulled back, her brow furrowed with concern. "Ems?"

I lifted my stricken face to hers. "Thorns," I grunted. "Bloody thorns." Carefully, she pulled me off the quince.

"Sorry, Em. Shit." She held my hips firmly, slowly backed me toward our willow tree then steadied me against its trunk. My back still throbbing, I sat down wearily on the grass again. Naomi took a seat too. It was just incredibly annoying. _Lady Interruption just loves badly timed visits, eh._ When I lifted my scowling face to hers and our eyes met, we burst out laughing for the umpteenth time tonight.

"I swear 99% of my bruises came from you," I jokingly grumbled. "You're one sadistic woman, Naomi Campbell." With a soft grunt of pain, I took my top off and examined my back for bruises. My back had splotches of red, and Naomi bent to look.

"I'm really sorry, Ems," she offered not-so-sincerely, which made me look hard at her even more. Then a crazifying sting made me look at my bare back once more.

Naomi let out a laugh which was smothered as soon as her gaze slid down to my almost-naked upper body. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her blue eyes feasting on me. I turned back to look at her, my bones shuddered as I noticed Naomi grew dense with desire.

Biting her lip, she looked at me more intently, her eyes burning with sheer hunger. She swallowed, started to speak, stopped, then tried again.

"If you want to stop, now's the time."

I stared at her; the thought of stopping at this point had never entered my mind. She seemed to misinterpret my reaction, because she said quickly, "I don't mean I won't stop if you tell me." She made a wry face at me. "I only mean if we go any further then get interrupted again, it'll probably kill me."

"If you stop," I said, reaching out to trail a finger down her neck with as much nonchalance I could muster, "I may fucking kill you myself."

With a sound that was half groan, half chuckle, Naomi leant forward and crushed my lips beneath hers. Then she swept my hair and ran her mouth along one side of my neck. I welcomed her eagerly, arching my head back, and made my own move—my hands fumbling with the button of her denim shorts. I drew down the zipper, eased down her shorts a little, and slid my hand inside. "Emily . . ." Her voice was thin and reedy as I lifted her silky garment. Then I heard distant chatter and giggling which made me pull my hand away. Naomi muttered a curse against my skin.

I shoved gently against her chest with my shoulders. "Now, we stop."

"Jesus Christ," Naomi burst out, tingling with frustration. "This is fucking killing me!"

I leant back against the trunk, petrified. "I hear Misaki and Jess," I whispered. "Shh."

"No, they won't be here until 8." She reached for me again, and I slapped at her hands. She looked stricken. "Emily?"

She looked so cute, not to mention heart-stoppingly sexy, that I wanted to just pull her into my arms and kiss the life out of her, but I had to be reasonable.

"I'm serious, Naomes," I whispered, trying to keep a straight face. "I hear their footsteps now."

Her breath hot in my ear, she whispered, "They're probably just some passersby on the street. C'mon . . ." She put her hands on my hips and pulled me tightly to her.

I tensed and fought off her hands. I twisted to one side and lightly tried to push her away, but she held my wrists and stared at me, a faint smile twitching her lips.

I knew I was helpless then. "Fuck's sake, Naomi."

Her eyes were unwavering on mine, then she said, "Try and stop me." She tugged at the waistband of my panties, and then began to gently peel them down my legs when a familiar throaty roar of laughter sounded.

My heart jumped in my chest, and Naomi pulled her hands back. "Omigod, omigod, omigod," I quietly panicked, as our next-door neighbour Jessica and Misaki's voices became more perceptible. "They're coming!" Swiftly I crawled out on my knees and reached for my now-dusty wool shorts from the ground. I saw Naomi's pig shirt but it was too far away and three shadowy figures were already walking toward our spot. Breathlessly, I hid back behind the tree, quickly slipped my shirt on and pulled on my shorts. My back hard against the tree trunk, I squeezed my eyes shut and gnawed my lip in nerves.

Soon after, my eyes flew open at the sound of Naomi's peal of laughter.

"Shh!" I covered her mouth with my hand. Her shoulders shook from hysterical laughter. I tried to listen hard, but couldn't hear decently because of a snickering Naomi in front of me. She pulled my hand away from her mouth.

"You're making this difficult for me," I mock scolded her.

She grinned at me, a wide, white, wolfish smile. "God, you're so cute when you go to pieces. But, Jesus, relax, Em." A sudden cute _woof_ made my heart jump a little more. Oz appeared panting in front of us, with Naomi's pig shirt between his teeth.

"Thanks, Ozzy," Naomi whispered, rummaging his ears. "Good boy." The puppy was wagging his tail wildly, delighted to see us again.

Naomi turned to me again and we stared at each other, hot and itchy with frustration. "To be continued," she mouthed, and I could only grin at her in response.

"Emily? Is that you?" Jessica's coltishly slender figure and bowl-shaped hairstyle appeared out of the shadows. I moved a little to the right to hide. "Girl, I can see your red hair. You can come out now," she teasingly called. "Are you peeing back there?"

"Just wait, Jess," Naomi called back through clenched teeth as she hastily fumbled with the zipper of her denim shorts. "Fuck's sake," she muttered, and I could definitely empathise with her. Too many disruptions for one night. She got to her feet, gently pulled me up with her and brushed the moss and broken leaf bits from my skin. Her body was also covered with pink petals, and I brushed them away. We shared another silent fit of giggles.

"Oh, my God." I could hear the mixture of shock and amusement in Jessica's voice. Misaki's giggling was also heard.

Naomi and I came out from behind the tree and faced our grinning friends. I was glad it was dark. Otherwise they would have seen my face go from pink to burning, shameful bright red. The blonde crouched down and called Oz. The Westie instantly rushed into her arms and licked her cheek frenziedly. "Ozzy, I missed you." She giggled.

Misaki took a camellia petal off my hair and giggled. "Your hair is a warzone, Emily-chan." I only gave her an embarrassed shrug, and grinned.

Jessica flicked her gaze to Naomi then to me, and her eyes bulged. "Omigod, did you?"

I shook my head in utter denial. My embarrassment returned full force. But it must have been written all over my face, because her eyes widened all the more.

"Omigod, you did!" she exclaimed. "Oh, sweet God. You two!" She let out a peal of laughter that seemed completely incongruous to our peaceful surroundings. Then she bent down to pick something up.

"And, um, who might need her belt back?" Jessica asked, a familiar-looking belt dangling from her fingers. Swiftly Naomi stood up, took it from her hand and fastened it back wordlessly. Jessica laughed harder.

"And it seems like you girls have already started the party?" Misaki was holding the empty vodka bottle up.

Naomi broke into chuckles. After shooting the blonde a _very funny_ look, I turned to Misaki and smiled. "Don't ask."

"Okay." Misaki pressed her lips together, her dark brown eyes sparkling humourously.

I picked Oz up from the ground and fondled his pointed ear. "Thanks for bringing him here, Misaki," I told the Japanese girl. "Sorry if he's such a little troublemaker."

Misaki smiled. "Not at all. I actually find him a cool housemate. He's like my very own pick-me-up." She moved to pat the puppy's tiny head. "I love him."

"That's nice to hear," I said, smiling back.

Naomi and Jessica spread the blanket onto the grass again. Jessica sat down and began to take out some chow-filled plastic containers from a huge paper bag. "So we brought loads of chips and beers. And Misaki prepared some crazy-looking salad for our vegetarian here, spicy chicken wings, and tomato-basil focaccia. I also got us some take-out sushi." She clasped her hands together enthusiastically. "Let's get this thing together. Where's the bonfire?"

Misaki was staring down at the ashes of our own little light up, her lips pursed. "Hm. Seems like we were late for the bonfire, Jessica-chan . . ."

Blushing again, I mumbled an excuse, "Yea, erm, some kid accidentally knocked over the candles."

Jessica snorted a laugh. "Oh, honey. Oz can tell an even better lie."

"Over there!" I heard Naomi gasp and saw her quickly adjusting the ring around her camera's lens. "The Daimonji!"

I lifted my head to the distant mountain in front of us. And there it was. Glowing slowly stroke after stroke until it formed into a perfect _dai_. It was quite a view.

Jessica snorted. "People go to this place just to watch that thing? How lame is that?"

"It's not just _that_, Jessica-chan," Misaki pointed out softly. "It's the Japanese way of sending the spirits of our ancestors back to heaven. That's just how we do it."

Jessica only gave a snort of laughter. "I'm just going to eat and get drunk tonight. That's the way _to_ do it." She pulled plastic spoons and forks out of a paper bag. "Here, girls." She tossed plastic utensils to us. And we instantly filled our plates with food.

The night swirled into a mixture of people and music, alcohol and hot coals. For a while the four of us chatted whilst eating and making toasts. I was hungry then. But my hunger was mostly caused by my unfulfilled craving for the blonde who was also staring back at me with the same blazing fire in her eyes. I wanted to drag her back into our room and throw her down. I could hardly breathe. God, what _was_ it about her?

After the delightful dinner I lay on my back, my hands under my head. The noises had died down for the night; our willow tree rattled, but gently, in the breeze that had picked up finally after the breathless heat of the day. Moonlight flooded through the branches. It felt warm on my skin. The bonfire on the mountain ahead was still burning. I was snapped out of my reverie by a sudden blasting music.

"C'mon, let's juice this night up, y'all!" Jessica jumped to her feet, then pulled Naomi up with her. "You cannot not dance to Nicki Minaj."

Naomi rolled her eyes and was about to sit down again when Misaki stood and started dancing with Jessica, kicking off her shoes in the lush grass. Naomi gave in and started moving too. She turned to me and called, "Come on, Ems." But I only shook my head and stuck my tongue out at her. She only scrunched up her face and whirled to go on dancing.

Propping myself up on my elbows, I watched the three of them, a faint smile on my face. Misaki and I had gone from best-friend mode to couple mode to best-friend mode again—which was actually well nice. She was a true friend, whatever else we were—or weren't—to each other. She'd always been my friend, from the first time we'd sat on the bleachers together after our very first Los Ma training. And Naomi and I . . . we were never best-friends. We knew from the first time we laid eyes on each other that we would always be more than friends. We can never be _just friends_. The crazy things that happened last year just proved that. At least, from the way I saw it.

I sat up and reached for a chicken wing. Naomi's giggling caught my attention. I watched as she danced with her hands in the air with a very cute Oz hopping in a circle around her. I heard it again. _Oh, God. Those giggles._ The melodic sound made me heave a soft, contented breath. Naomi Campbell was still the person I felt closest to in the world, the person who meant the entire universe to me. She was the love of my life, my knight in shining armour, the queen of my heart. Nothing could ever change that. She had moved me as no other in my life ever had. Cue the strings and harps playing in the background again.

My silent veneration must have shown in my face, because when the blonde turned her head to look at me, the heat in her eyes flared.

She walked over to me, then plopped back down on the blanket beside me. She gently looped some of my red hair behind my ear so she could see my face. "You all right, Ranga?"

"Not really," I mumbled through a mouthful of wing. "You're making me weak in the knees."

She drew back with a delighted laugh. "I am?"

"Yes." I hurled my finished chicken wing to the waterside, where three or four white birds did noisy battle over it.

"Hey! Why did you do that?" Naomi glowered at me.

My brows came together, and I snorted. "Do what? Throw my rubbish away?"

"You made those birds eat chicken, Emily," she filled in soberly. "That's cannibalism."

I looked at her oddly for a moment. The serious expression on her face made me crack up, and she joined in.

As soon as we sobered, I saw Naomi's gaze shift to my mouth. I could feel the coals of desire being fanned once more between us. She leant in and whispered into my ear, "I'm thinking of our warm, big bed now."

"Yea, me too," I said, feeling a dark sort of thrill race through me. "So can we now ditch this and just start our own little bonfire in our room?"

My naughty invitation caught her off guard, but she managed a casual response. "No. Not yet," she said, looking out at the mountain and suppressing a smirk. "We have to wait until the bonfire's snuffed out."

I felt a shock of desire so strong it was like pain. "Naomi—"

"Shh," she said out of the corner of her mouth. "Delaying it will make the pleasure more intense. You said so yourself." The corners of her mouth twitched with a teasing smile.

I just exhaled my frustration in a short breath and went on looking at the bonfire. After a few moments of silent watching, I felt familiar magical fingers skimming along my arm. Stifling a smirk, I turned my head to look at the blonde again.

"You're not scared of me now, are you, babe?" she asked, her bright blue eyes dancing with humour.

"No," I said. "I'm a little scared of how you make me feel."

She smiled. "Well, that's easy, Emily," she said, reaching out to cup my face. "That just takes practice."

A smirk came to my face. "Ah, yea?"

"Yes. The more you practice, the better you get at it. And if you do it right, the thrill never goes away."

I wasn't entirely sure what she was talking about but I just played along. I leant in closer to her, and heard her breath hitch. "Then . . . perhaps we should practice," I said, my voice so husky that it was like a physical caress to her aroused senses.

"Definitely," she said, her own voice a little thick now. "Practice. Lots of practice. Just you and me in our little hideaway." She kissed me with a soft love bite on my lower lip. "But we're going to take our time, take it very slow . . ."

The bonfire had burned down to an orange glow. But in our eyes, the combating fires of smouldering lust and tender love were still ablaze.

For heart-racing, sweltering moments we only looked at each other until a deep growl made our heads snap downward. Standing on the very small space between us, Oz was grumbling, obviously getting jealous. Naomi and I looked at each other again and shared fits of giggles.

My eyes not leaving her face, I put my hand over the puppy's eyes and said, "Oz, your Mummy Naomi's mine tonight, 'kay?" I gently pushed him away. "She's all mine tonight."

The heat in the blonde's eyes flared higher, making me take a gulping breath.

She got to her feet and pulled me up with her then, and I went willingly, eagerly. She linked our fingers and within moments I was nearly as hot as I'd been behind the bushes, and I knew the battle I'd fought to put up with all the disturbances all night was nothing compared to the battle it was going to be to take this slow.

But I would. Very slow. Not just I could savour every sweet, hot minute, but so I could see her fall apart in my arms as we ultimately set our own night on fire. Our very own little light up. Just me and Naomi. In our little hideaway.

And if anyone or anything tried to interrupt us this time, I swore I would do violence.


	4. Halfway Valentine: Haven

**"Haven"**

**I** heard the sound of a key inserting into the doorknob, Naomi's soft grunt of exhaustion, the opening of the door. I was huddled under the covers, anxious for her to come to me. I had just woken up from an afternoon nap that had apparently stretched until darkness. Naomi stripped off her clothes, slipped on her pig shirt and climbed in bed, then wrapped her arms around me.

"How's your day?" I asked.

"Don't talk," she murmured, her lips against my nape. "Hug me."

That I could do. Willingly. I was glad, too, that she felt the need to cuddle because I felt it like a stirring of my soul. Movingly silkily beneath the blankets, I curled my naked limbs against hers. I wore an oversized T-shirt that Naomi's warm hands pulled off me. Her mouth touched the flesh at the base of my neck, her tongue circling the skin over and over again, as if she couldn't bear to move on.

Then she rolled on top of me and sat up to straddle me. Her hands moved to my abdomen, paused. I didn't know what was going on in her head. But I felt like all the love and desire she had for me was mirrored through her twinkling, blazing blue eyes that were fixed on my face. It was as if she were treating herself to a visual feast.

My brows wrinkled in query as I stared up at her through the darkness. "Naomes?"

Suddenly she lowered her head and moved her lips slowly across the smooth, taut hollow of my stomach. "I love it that you're mine," she said, kissing the supple skin. "I just love it that you're mine."

I smiled, and reached up to slip my hands under her shirt and run them along her back. Back and forth, lovingly.

She kissed her way up to my mouth and made love to it. "I missed you."

"Okay," I said slowly, half amused and half bewildered by her sudden oddness. "We were just apart for less than eight hours, Naomi."

"I know," she murmured against the velvet spot beneath my ear. "But I missed you a lot. I love you."

"I love you, too," I said, my hands caressing their way down to rest on her hips.

Naomi sat up again and her gaze lingered on my exposed chest. "Has anyone ever told you you have really cute boobies?" she said teasingly. "Cute with a capital Q." She ducked her head to blaze a trail of kisses around my chest, and I giggled because it felt ticklish.

"And yours is worthy of Ripley's _Believe It or Not_," I added.

She laughed into the valley between my breasts where she was kissing. Lifting her head, something caught her attention. Her eyes widened with delighted surprise.

"Oh, Ems," she gasped, staring at a vase holding a bunch of white lilies behind the lamp. "Did you get those for me?"

"No," I said dryly. "They're for the janitress mopping the floor outside. She cleaned my little milk spill in the hallway."

Naomi let out a laugh, then she pressed her lips on mine. "Shut up." She lifted her head to gaze at the flowers again and reached for a stem. "Aww . . . this is just so romamtic, Em." She took a long whiff of its scent. "These lovely lilies totally made my day. And your cute boobies. The lilies and your boobies." She giggled, and I scowled at her.

When Naomi rolled off of me, I snatched up my shirt. "Are you done marveling at my cute boobies?"

She nodded, chuckling. Without further ado, I sat up and slipped my shirt on again. It was just oddly cold in the room, and for some bizarre reason, it felt so weird being the only half-naked one in the room. The darkness inside the room only made the atmosphere seem chillier so I switched the lamp on.

Naomi rested her head against the pillows, and I curled up beside her. And automatically she put her arms around me. For some reason we wound up that way a lot.

Feeling so much warmer now, I lifted my head to gaze up at her. She was looking silently at the ceiling. "Is everything all right, Naomes?"

Her fingers were skimming along my spine. "Not really," she mumbled. "It's just a stressful day. My new Development Economics professor is from hell."

"Then tell him he can go back and fuck himself in hell," I said, and the blonde laughed. "How about a back rub, babe?" I offered.

Naomi smiled. "Yes, please." She rolled over and lay flat on the bed on her stomach. I sat lightly on her butt, straddling her. With her help, I took her pig shirt off, then started rubbing her shoulders. I unfastened the hooks of her bra then kneaded my way down her back.

"How's that?" I asked, whilst my thumbs sank into her back.

She let out a blissful moan. "Mmm. Good."

I rubbed her arms, working down to her hands, which were warm and smooth.

"My adviser asked me to be his research assistant and grader, by the way," Naomi informed me.

"Okay. What does that work entail?" I asked, now massaging her lower back.

She tucked her arms under her pillow. "Just involves extra reading with reports back to him. Oral reports, not written. So it's not much of a hassle. He has five classes of forty or more students."

I paused mid-motion to which she quickly added, "It's only two nights a week. Three hours max."

"Any particular reason why he picked you?"

"I am his best student," she said simply. "You know that. I'm always the best."

When I didn't reply, Naomi lifted her head and looked behind her at me. "If it bothers you so much, Ems, I could decline."

"No," I said. "If it's strictly a business arrangement then . . . no objection, your Honour."

"Emily, the guy's forty-something, with a double-chin, married, has two kids already. And he has a cock," she pointed out.

I smirked then. "Okay, okay. Point taken."

I kissed my way up her butter-soft skin before drawing back, refastening the hooks of her bra, and plopping down on my back beside her on the bed. I sank back into the deep, soft pillows, turned my head to the side to look at my girlfriend.

Placing one arm over my chest, Naomi let out a contented sigh. "I love home."

I let my eyes close for a moment and smiled. "Yea, this room gets 7 stars for its cosiness," I said, grazing the arm she had thrown over me. "And this bed is beyond compare."

"I meant you, Emily," I heard her say softly. "You. My home."

I opened my eyes and looked at Naomi, again. My smile bloomed not just from the bone-melting effect of her words, but also because of the tantalising sight. So strikingly beautiful, I was seized with an urge to kiss away all her strain, all her troubles. And so I leant in to place a soft, soothing kiss on her lips. Another blissful little sigh from the blonde revealed that I was somewhat successful.

"Naomi, are you happy here?" I asked quietly, tracing her arm with a gentle finger.

Her brows creased, and she let out a snort of chuckle. "What kind of a question is that, Emily?"

"I mean," I said, "is this how you saw yourself five years ago?"

She paused for a while to think. "No. Not really," she said at length. "Five years ago, I was sure—all right—I was sure I'd be away from Melbourne," she said. "You know, just living the untroubled nomadic life. I dreamt of sailing off to some deserted island, or go travelling around the world and setting up orphanages."

"Alone?"

"I did consider that, yes," she said. "But then I thought, why not share the fun if the right globetrotter comes along, right? So I knew I would be doing all sorts of adventures—with the right person."

"With the right person," I quietly echoed, then my eyes strayed from hers to the ceiling.

"Yes, with the right person," Naomi said, placing a finger under my chin for me to meet her eyes. "In other words, _you_, Emily."

The corners of my mouth twitched with an answering smile. I was falling into her sincere blue-eyed gaze, her sensitive soul, her lips where unexpected syrupy words escape from time to time, and suddenly time begins to lose its grasp. It was always like this with Naomi. Only with Naomi.

"It would be nice, yea?" she said with a dreamy smile. "Now I'm thinking of you and me getting shipwrecked together during a storm, swimming to shore, healing each other's wounds with local herbs and plants, building a little hut in the middle of nowhere, starting our own civilisation and all the love blossoming between us."

I found myself picturing such a moment. Naomi and I. Girl and girl, taking refuge against the thunder, the lightning, the water rising in gargantuan waves, swept away by their feelings. Naomi continued to look into my eyes, to explore my face with her gaze, and I held it. It was almost a caress. A wave of giddy dizziness washed over me.

"I would be up for the globetrotting sort of adventure," I said easily. "There are faraway places I definitely wouldn't mind seeing. It's up there on my wish list."

"Sounds fun, yea? To go around the world. Hit all five continents. Pack light. One pair of really comfortable walking shoes."

"Sounds really awesome," I said. "And the putting up of orphanages—that part was good. I love kids. But just the being castaways and staying in a deserted island kind of worries me a bit. I think I have to prepare myself for all of that—the rubbing two sticks together, building a hut, catching fish or hunting for wild boars, climbing coconut trees, and the grilling. Especially the grilling."

"You don't have to worry about that, babe," she said cockily, with a wink. "You got me—the Grill Queen, remember?" She snagged my pinky finger with her pinky finger and linked them, and I smiled at the sweetness of her gesture.

"What about your plan to go to Africa and teach teachers?" I asked. "What happened with that?"

"Well, I could always do that whenever I want to," she answered. "It's a continuous thing, you see. It goes on and on as long as there are sponsors and volunteers."

"But don't you think they need you there? I mean, your Grandpa's there. And now Gina . . ."

Naomi lifted our linked pinkies and kissed mine. "I'm here to be with you. I just want to be with you. I don't need to be anywhere else. I don't want to be anywhere else."

Her words made my heart melt, but I had to ask, "And you suppose this is where you belong?"

"You make your own sense of belonging, Emily," she said. "You can feel at home anywhere if you're at peace with yourself and if you're with someone whom you consider your shelter—shelter from all your troubles and anxieties. When you could take refuge in someone. When you feel safe and sound in their arms." She lifted her other hand to cup my face. "You are my home, Emily. You are my haven. You're my sweet safe haven," she said with a tender smile. "So to answer your first question: Yes. I'm happy here. Very much so."

I looked at her dumbfounded for a moment. Who was this girl who seemed to make me feel all these tremendous emotions all at the same time? Whom I felt like the only person who could make me feel this happy, this complete? Who was so heart-stoppingly beautiful that I was ready to give up everything but a single measly pair of Chuck Taylors and hop the next freighter to travel the world and set up orphanages with?

I blinked. "How'd you get to be so . . . clever?"

"Age," she said dryly. "I am older than you. I think I'm some wise old lady."

_Too beautiful for a wise old lady_, I thought. _Too bloody beautiful._

I gave her a mock hard stare. "If you're thinking two years makes you the boss, forget it."

Naomi only laughed at my statement. Then when she sobered, she took her turn. "What about you, Ems?" she asked softly, running her fingers through my red waves. "Is this how you saw yourself five years ago?"

"Nope. Very far from it, actually," I answered, gazing at the ceiling as I recalled. "I was convinced I'd be stuck in Bristol with the odd Fitches, living my humdrum life. My mother would probably be setting me up on dates with her friends' eligible banker or lawyer sons or some young local politician. I'd probably be staying in the guest room because Katie—and this has been proven—gets increasingly irritating every fucking year. And I'd simply be working on what I used to plan my life around for many years. I was so dedicated, so enthusiastic at the time, you know."

"So you never really felt at some point like you were losing touch with yourself?"

"I would pretend I wasn't," I admitted, toying mindlessly with the heart pendant of my necklace. "In the back of my mind, I knew I could work my way toward that goal and still suffer in the end. But it was just so much easier to imagine my life like that because it wasn't uncertain, you know. Because it was convenient. I suppose the thought of probably being astray and unhappy had been lurking in my mind for a while then, and I'd never before let down my guard enough for it to surface until I came to Japan and broke free."

Naomi nodded. "Like the lid to Pandora's box unexpectedly flying open and having the ugly truth pop out."

"Exactly. I dreaded it," I said with a sigh. "There was even a moment when I thought if I get jaded, I could chuck it altogether and just sell sno-cones at a theme park," I went on, making Naomi chuckle. "It was, you know, one of those thoughts that were so frightening you're afraid to say them out loud."

Naomi rolled over to her stomach and propped her chin up with her fist. "Now you make me think, Emily Fitch," she said. "A little more conversation, a little less action."

I turned gently to my side, pulling her close to me. "Why? Can't you have a little more of both?"

Pursing her lips, she gazed at me through narrow lids. "Hm. That could wait 'til later," she said, untangling herself from me. "I'll go get some groceries. You want Honey Pops this week, yea?"

"You don't have to."

"I know. I'm older than you. I don't _have_ to do anything."

She said it so deadpan that I didn't realise for a moment that she was teasing. When I did, I couldn't help laughing out loud. She looked at me then, and I saw that glint in her eyes. She might be a bit nonchalant, but a devilish sense of humour lurked behind the cool exterior.

Along with a passionate fire that was hidden even deeper. A fire that had, from what I could see, surprised even her. And I couldn't deny how that made me feel, to think she'd never felt that way before, that it was me, and my touch, and my kisses, that had startled her own response.

"—might be receiving desperate e-mails from him again."

With an effort, I quashed my unruly thoughts and my body's response to them, and tuned back in to what she was saying.

"Desperate?" I asked, hoping the fact that I'd just zoned out wasn't obvious.

"Yes, I know, right?" she said, crawling off the bed and putting her shirt back on. "Before your little brother's dangerous and now he's desperate. So he's dangerously desperate. The FBI should put him on their blacklist or something."

I watched her grab her open laptop from the desk and saw her jump a little at the sudden ringing of a Skype video call. She looked down at the screen and a scowl broke into her face right away when she saw the floating window. "Oh, Jesus Christ, you must be having a laugh."

My brows rose. "James?"

"The one and only," she said wryly. With her laptop in her hands, she moved back to the bed and sat against the headboard. I reared up and sat beside her. She placed the laptop on her lap and only stared at the screen as the ringing went on.

"Answer it, then," I nudged her.

"No," she said. "This is unnecessary hypertension."

"C'mon," I prodded. "I'd like to hear what bollocks he's got this time."

"No, Emily," she said, looking at me. "You might think this is a joke but the last convo your brother and I had did bother me for quite a while."

An amused smirk curled my lip. "C'mon, babe. Answer it."

The laptop began a second insistent ringing. Before Naomi could decline, I clicked on _Answer_.

My brother appeared in the little window, snickering. "Hi, Naomi. Thanks for answering," he sang out, and the blonde rolled her eyes in response. "Hi, Emily. I know you're there."

I popped my head to the webcam's range and flashed my brother a big, fake smile. He laughed harder.

Naomi stared at my grinning brother. "James," she said in a serious tone, "if you think this—incessant calling and sending me e-mails—is some sort of a nice, little pastime for you, quit it, all right? Do I look like a fucking clown to you?"

"No. Not at all," he said, trying to sound as earnest as possible. "You're involved in this, Naomi."

"I'm involved?" the blonde repeated blankly.

He nodded. "Yes."

Naomi's expression then turned severe. "I thought I made it clear that I don't want any part in your pervy little businesses, James Fitch."

"This is about my unpromising future," James said. "With my potential wife. With our unborn kids. With our happily ever after."

Naomi threw her hands in the air. "Which has every-fucking-thing to do with me. Oh, now I understand!"

"I'm getting to that part," James said slowly.

Naomi's e-mail inbox sounded with a new mail alert. She opened it in one window and found out it was from—none other than—James. A couple of image files were attached to the e-mail.

"Okay," Naomi began, turning her attention back to James, "I'm completely and utterly baffled. This bafflement could easily morph into unbelievable fury at any moment. So I would really like an explanation for all of this now."

"It's like this," James said briskly. "So a couple of days ago Gordon MacPherson's brother received his monthly subscription of _Sports Illustrated_ in the mail and, of course, Gordon and I devirginised the magazine first. And when I saw the cover I was just so ecstatic. It was like a gift from heaven."

"Kindly cut to the chase," Naomi said, her irritation rising.

"But, just last night," he added, "Gordon MacPherson and I were surfing the internet and we stumbled across an article that really got me confused and broke my heart." He placed a hand dramatically over his chest and made a sad face. "It really tore my heart into tiny pieces."

When Naomi looked at me for help, I said sharply to my brother, "Fuck's sake. Get to it quickly."

"All right, all right," James said. "Zoe's gay. The love of my life, Zoe Hammond, is playing for your team. I mean, how could she be a dyke with mint tits like that?"

"What?" My brows came together in question. "I mean, how did you—?"

"Check out the files I sent you and all will make sense," James said. "I also posted there some helpful links."

We opened the image files. One was Zoe posing for the cover of the swimsuit edition of _Sports Illustrated_. The other one was a collage of news articles of her being out as a lesbian.

My hand flew to my mouth at once. "Oh, my God. Zoe," I gasped, staring incredulously at the front cover of_Sports Illustrated_. And the blonde next to me was just as shocked.

"Yes. Oh, my God, yea?" James said with a scoff. "I mean, who does she think she is stringing me along after all this time just to slap me with this without warning?"

Naomi looked him dead in the eye. "James—"

"No," he said stubbornly. "She broke my heart, you guys. I thought we had something special. Her being gay means she rejected me."

"She rejected a whole population," I corrected him. "Not just you, you mong."

"She used _me_. She led _me_ on. All I did was love her," James said, looking genuinely hurt.

"James, you and Zoe were never together," Naomi pointed out. "You aren't even friends."

"I know. But she's the girl I was gonna marry. What about that eternity?" James's eyes were starting to well up with tears. And I swallowed a laugh at the sight of my wounded little brother, making Naomi pinch my thigh.

Naomi regarded my brother with unusual compassion. "James, it's not the end of the world and Zoe's not the last girl on earth. Soon you will find the right girl for you. You're too young to take all of this seriously. So just wait and the perfect girl will come along, okay?" she said, her tone surprisingly sympathetic. "We knew about Zoe and we're sorry we didn't tell you before. And we're sorry we know how much you like her."

"Love," James corrected, sniffling.

"Okay. If you say so," Naomi said patiently. "But you have to start moving on, James. Now, if you don't need anything else, can we just talk some other time? I have a bitch of a headache right now."

But James wasn't done. "There's one more thing . . ."

Turning our gazes back to James, we saw his frown break into a wicked grin.

"If you could convert a straight girl to gay like what my sister did to you, Naomi," he said, "is it possible to convert a gay girl to str—?"

Impulsively I slammed Naomi's laptop shut, not letting James to even finish his question. "For Pete's sake. That little worm is hopeless!" I leant back against the headboard then massaged my temples.

Naomi cocked her head at me, then burst out laughing.

I narrowed my eyes at her. "Naomi, this is not a laughing matter. My brother has a _serious_ mental problem. It's outrageous."

She laughed, then bit her lip. "It's not funny."

"Oh, yea?" I arched a brow.

"This is your fault, you know," she said, trying to keep a straight face. "I told you not to answer his call. Look at you now."

She fought the chuckles of amusement that shook her body and lost the battle. I gave in and laughed with her. We had a brief pillow duel after that.

"Let's look at the photos again," I said, after we'd sobered. "I wasn't able to—"

"No." Naomi moved to crawl off the bed, hugging her laptop securely to her chest.

"Naomi, c'mon," I implored, tugging at the hem of her top. "Just a quick look."

"No—!" she half-squealed, as I pulled her back down to the bed. We both fell into fits of laughter.

"I want to see," I prodded, trapping her writhing body in my arms.

She gave me a friendly shove with her elbow. "You perve. You just want to look at Hammond's boobies, don't you?" she said, making me laugh as we rolled on the bed.

Amazed that she could still be so naïve, I tried to take the laptop from her. "I just want to see how far she'd go."

She twisted as I tickled her sides, but she kept hold of her laptop. "No."

Laughing, I snagged one of her hands and held it firmly. "Naomi!"

Giggling helplessly, she reared up to try and free herself, but I pushed her back onto the bed and quickly sat on her legs to straddle her.

"C'mon, babe," I urged, reaching for her laptop which she swiftly hid under the heap of pillows above her. It wasn't really my intention to get the laptop from her hands; I just wanted to hear her giggles which were pure honey to my ears.

"No! Ems!" The laughing protest ended on a strangled gasp as I pinned down her arms to the mattress.

Desire choked off laughter as soon as I caught sight of Naomi's sexy black satin bra partially revealed under her top. Her ivory skin looked beautiful in the soft lighting. Instant heat. Instant need. A fire directly licked along my nerves. Here's a fact—a scientific fact: Women's underwear is more appetizing than men's. As if I really did care about what those beasts wear.

My gaze slid up to Naomi's mouth. Her lower lip just begged to be bitten. Here's another fact: In my modified Land of Oz, Naomi Campbell got the part of the Witch of the West. I would have sold my blood to bite any part of the blonde.

Before I even realised I was going to do it, I had leant over and was kissing her. Her hands slid up under my shirt, over my back, and I nearly lost it at the feel of her fingers caressing my bare skin. I went on kissing her, urgently, fiercely, the growing heat being fed by the little sounds of pleasure she made and the way she moved beneath me.

When Naomi's hands went to the back of my head, to match my eagerness, the heat inside me turned into a leaping blaze. I stroked my way up her ribs to the undersides of her breasts. With my mouth continuing its ardent, loving work, I let my hands slip under her bra and thrilled to the warm velvety texture of each full mound. I cupped them, tenderly touched them, and the blonde's breathing had become rapid. With maddening slowness, I kissed my way down to her chest, plucking at her skin softly with my lips, tasting her with my tongue. Then I kissed the lush, fragrant flesh with abandon, dropping fervent, damp kisses at random. When my mouth pushed the fabric down and fastened on a crest, a sound that was half sigh, half sob came out of her throat and she leant forward. She grabbed a handful of my hair as if frantically groping for a handhold to keep her on the world, to keep her from flying out into space as I suckled gently on a crest, laving her with my tongue.

Lifting my head, I watched as Naomi clutched at air. "Ripley's _Believe It or Not_ material, indeed," I husked, smiling against the black garment that had miraculously stayed in place.

"Oh, Jesus, Em," she gasped softly. Her head lolled on the pillow even as her chest heaved with gasping breaths. She blinked against the lamplight until I shaded her face with my head.

"Okay, okay—God, I can't breathe." She tried again. "Okay, okay, I give. We'll look at it together."

I grinned then dropped hot kisses on her lips. Naomi levered herself up so that we sat, facing each other. She straightened her shirt, then looked back at me, clearly washed with the previous fire. We exchanged a goofy grin, then a giggle.

"I knew it." I pinched her chin lightly between my fingers. "Two years doesn't make you the boss around here."

"Shut up." She batted my hand away, and I laughed victoriously.

We sprawled back down on the bed, lying on our stomachs together, and Naomi finally opened her laptop. "New babe in the pool," I instantly read from an article as Naomi and I started to play footsie. It had become a custom for the two of us that whenever we're on the bed—watching or reading something together—we would just stroke each other's foot.

Naomi let out a derisive snort. "More like new badass in the pool."

I scrolled down the article, and saw her photos with her supposedly teammates. "I wonder if Spandex has hit on all the girls on her swim team."

"That's not too far-fetched, knowing Hammond."

"God, this is so awesome," I said with an amused chuckle, as I studied her article. "Zoe's definitely in it to win it, eh?"

Naomi frowned. "I am imagining her life is hell right now."

"Or maybe not," I said. "She's advanced to sex symbol status and darling of the paparazzi. Must be awesome. And fabulous."

"You've got a point," she agreed, and her eyes slid down to another article. "And she's out and proud now. Wow."

"Yea, I bet she would be outing more closeted girls around her," I said, smirking. "That girl is a female Casanova."

I scrolled down again, and both our eyes bulged as I read a sub-headline, "Zoe's wild nights in Japan."

"Oh, dear God," Naomi gasped. "Don't tell me that includes my—"

"Ladylike slap," we said in unison, and we both burst out laughing. Thankfully, Zoe didn't mention any _Clash of the Titans_-inspired scenes in her interview. Just a bunch of drunken make-outs with random Japanese girls and wild body shots with my good ol' buddy Sierra Tequila. _Un-fucking-believable._

After we checked out some Hammond news, Naomi shut her laptop closed. "I should head off to the supermarket. What do you want for dinner?"

"You," I answered, grinning naughtily. "With whipped cream on top."

Naomi's expression was severe. "Emily."

"Just stay here," I said cajolingly, trapping her with my leg.

"Seriously, Em," she said, "the tofus are sold out by 7:30. What time is it?" She lifted her head to check out the clock on the bedside table, but I moved my head to block her view.

She scowled at me, and I said lightly, "You don't need a clock to know the time, you know." I snatched the clock from the table and dropped it down to the floor.

"Okay, you just sounded like my mum. She was a Gilt Cross awarded Girl Scout back in the days," Naomi said, and I chuckled as an image of young Gina Campbell in green uniform popped into my brain.

"Anyway," I said, rolling over to face her again. "If you need to know the time, you can just check the garden outside. Carolus Linnaeus, this Swedish botanist, observed that some flowers open at certain times. Like dandelions between five and six in the morning."

"And when do dandelions close?" she asked, half joking, and half impressed by my obscure knowledge.

I squinted in the lamplight and propped my head up with one hand. "You're testing me, but don't . . ." I was tracing invisible patterns on her arm with the other. "They close at eight or nine."

Her gaze flew to the flowers on the bedside table. "How about the lilies?"

"The lilies open at seven or eight and close around six or seven."

Naomi raised her brows at me, genuinely in awe. "Wow. Now where did you learn all this, missy?"

I leant in and kissed her lips. "Two years doesn't make you the Yoda here."

"Master Yoda, I am certainly not," she said, putting on a heavy guttural voice. "The Dalai Lama, I'd like to think I am."

I cracked up at the hilarity. _God, I have the funniest girlfriend._ "But your astronomical knowledge is extraordinary," I pointed out.

"Speaking of which . . ." she said, "You know, flower girl, you can use the moon to tell time, too." I moved my head toward hers so we were nose to nose. "The moon—it's highest at midnight . . ."

"Like a lot of wild teenagers," I quipped, and she laughed and pinched my nose.

"I gotta go." Naomi rolled off the bed and got to her feet. I started up after her, but she turned, pointing at me. "Stay here." I did. She walked behind me, lifted my long red hair and kissed the nape of my neck. "I knew it," she said smugly. "I _am_ the boss."

Then, as she drew back and turned to leave, she reached out and touched my chin with her fingertips. "Behave properly while I'm gone, 'kay, Emsy Baby?"

As she moved to the closet to yanked on her jeans, I called after her, "Cougar."

"Nice one," she said with a little laugh. "Crybaby."

"Cradle robber," I shot back.

"Childish twat."

"Dirty old woman."

The last comeback made her wince and look at me, slightly open-mouthed for a moment. Her expression made me smirk triumphantly. Then slowly, menacingly, her brows rose up. "I'm gonna get you for this, Little Fitch."

I grinned, truly excited for her payback. "Can't wait, Aunt Naomi," I teased in a little girl's voice. "Could you bwing me some whipped cweam too?" I wiggled my brows suggestively.

Smiling in amusement, Naomi grabbed her wallet and bicycle key from the desk. "Don't go anywhere, you naughty little girl. I'm gonna show you _dirty_ later." Then she took her grey hoodie jacket from the couch and turned toward the door.

I sat down on the edge of the bed and gazed at my girlfriend. I simply wanted to revel in what Naomi and I had found, that incredible fire, but I couldn't help wondering what would happen in the future. Walking away from such incredible passion, something I'd never thought to find for myself, seemed impossible. But so did the idea of my boring and organised world ever melding with Naomi's rough and tumble existence. But reflecting on what we have now, it was unquestionable that we just seem to . . . _fit_.

Naomi was my life now. I tried to picture myself being somewhere else—not even in Kyoto, necessarily, just anywhere without the blonde. But picturing myself to that life now, never seeing Naomi again, never seeing the flashes of sharp wit dart from behind that blasé mask, never seeing that sexy lip-biting only she could perfectly pull off, never hearing that melodic giggle again, never experiencing the magic that her fingers wove, never having another night just like we'd always had . . . It made me ache inside. It was another thought that was so frightening I was afraid to say it out loud.

"Wait!" I got to my feet, made my way toward her, held her close, and planted a soft, lingering kiss on her lips. But when I gave her another one, she pulled back.

"As much as I would love to play around some more, I'm leaving," she said.

I kissed her neck, her cheek, her lips. But Naomi stood her ground. I let out a chuckle, but she remained expressionless.

Reading her stoicism, I sighed. "Oh, Naomi," I said with real suffering. "You're going to kill me."

"Stay here," she told me again, and spun on her heel but not before leaving me with knee-trembling wink and an electrifying line: "I'll come back with some whipped cream."

Smiling to myself, I watched as the door shut closed behind her.

I will stay. Of course.

Naomi Campbell was my happiness. My home. My _haven_.

* * *

**To read full story, check out HALFWAY VALENTINE's official site. Simply search for the story online. Keywords: Halfway Valentine **or** xOxIANS**


	5. Halfway Valentine: Chasing Campbell

"**Chasing Campbell****"**

"**H**ey, there, sexy," I said by way of greeting as Naomi walked inside the room. I was sitting on the bed, reading a hair-raising WWII memoir written by a Japanese soldier whilst massaging my ankle.

"Hey, yourself." Naomi glanced around the room. "I smell Fitch salad."

"There's a nice bowl waiting for you over there." I pointed to the wooden desk with a lift of my chin. "What took you so long? Isn't it that your last class was cancelled today?"

She crossed the room toward the desk. "Yep. Dropped by Family Mart to pay our phone bills and went to the postal office to drop off a postcard for Grandpa," she said. "What about you, babe? What kept you busy?" She picked up a fork and took a leaf of lettuce.

I uncapped a small bottle of massage oil and poured some onto my ankle. "Just some advanced reading. And self-therapy." I went on kneading the throbbing muscle.

She dropped her canvas bag onto the table and mumbled through a chunk of avocado, "You can relax for a bit now, Em. I'll work on your foot in a little while."

With a tiny pleased smile, I stopped mid-motion and lifted my head up to look at my fair-haired goddess.

Wind had disheveled her hair, turning into a riot of golden waves, which curled up enticingly at the ends. Bright spots of colour filled her cheeks and her blue eyes sparkled. I wanted to drag her into my arms and make love to her before doing anything else, but she seemed somewhat distracted . . . and sickened?

Glancing up, Naomi looked around the room. "Oh, God. Now this room reeks of a concoction of expired yoghurt drinks. What is that weird thing you're using?" Scrunching up her nose, she moved toward me, picked up the small bottle of gooey orange liquid from the bedside table and studied it as if it were a disease.

"It's some Japanese herbal healing oil my classmate gave me. It's supposed to work a miracle and get rid of the pain in no time."

She wincingly dropped the bottle back on the table. "Why the rush? Healing takes time, you know."

"Well, I wasn't able to go shopping with you the other day, wasn't able to go parading with you with the butt-naked old Japanese men the other night during the fire festival, didn't get to join you and the girls last night at Blackout either," I said. "If you're going to keep leaving me, I'm going to have to get myself fit enough to chase you."

The blonde smirked. "You've got a long way to go, hun. I'm pretty fast."

I examined my left foot. "Yea," I agreed soberly, and Naomi sat on the edge of the bed by me, wrapped her arms around me and kissed me hard on the mouth. "And what was that for?" I asked, a little surprised.

She arched one brow. "For being so pathetically cute," she said. "And, Ems, I thought I made it clear that there's no more running away, all right?"

"I know." I slipped my arms around her and pressed my face into the crispness of her pastel purple top. She didn't move, apart from brushing her lips along my hair. "I like this," I murmured.

"Mmm. Same." She hugged me closer.

We stayed that way for long seconds. I drank in her scent, recalling the soft white curves of her flesh she had lain across me in bed. Finally, I asked softly, "What do you suppose we should do next?"

"Hot make-out in the mini pond outside?"

"With my Little Emilies?" My shoulders shook with soundless laughter. "Ew. No."

"Then how about hot make-out here? In this very bed. Our warm, big bed."

"Before dinner? What would our next-door neighbour say?"

"Jessica's not here. She has her hot date with this Japanese rocker, and besides, she already knows we're just completely unsalvageable in that department," she said, and I laughed, my day still getting brighter even though it was nearly twilight.

I drew back just enough to look into Naomi's face. "Tell you what, babe, let me put this food together for a change. You've been cooking for me every day. It's about time I treat you."

She raised her brows smugly, obviously pleased. "So I'm your queen for the night?"

"My flaxen-haired queen for the night, yes." I pressed a tender kiss on her mouth. "And perhaps for a few nights more if Your Majesty pleases." I planted another soft kiss that made her shudder a little. "We can eat right here. And then . . . ?" I left the thought unfinished.

"How about a joint shower?" she suggested. "Or a dip in that weird-looking egg-shaped tub together?"

I put a hand gently on her face and smiled. "First things first. Bring out the plates and let's get this little party started."

The telephone rang before Naomi could respond. I reached for the receiver, and the blonde slipped out of my arms to move to the desk and resume eating her bowl of salad.

"Miss Fitch?" The high-pitched female voice undoubtedly belonged to our forty-five-year-old-and-still-very-single dorm manager, Miss Mitsui.

"Yes, Mitsui-san?"

"We have been informed that you have a pet dog in your room for a while now."

I sat upright in bed. "Yes." My gaze flicked to Naomi. Her mouth tightened, and she gave an upset shake of her head, clearly aware of the phone call's purpose as well.

"I have to let you know that pets are not allowed in the dorm premises, Miss Fitch."

"But it wasn't said in the guidebook that it's prohibited. Nor in the dorm rules at the lobby."

"I'm sorry, but you have to find some other place for your dog. Some residents are complaining about the noise."

"Oz is only a puppy," I protested. "He cannot survive without me. And besides, my girlfriend—I mean, my roommate is okay with it. You can even ask her."

"I deeply apologise but—"

"I brought Oz all the way here from England, Miss Mitsui," I tried for the last time. "What do you suppose I do with him?"

"I'm really sorry, Miss Fitch," the lady said with finality in her tone, "but there are rules and you just have to abide by them. We hope to hear no more of the same complaints in the following days. Thank you."

As soon as I replaced the receiver, I turned to Naomi, my face red with infuriation. "For Pete's sake! He's a little puppy. What the fuck are they thinking?"

"So Oz couldn't stay here?" Naomi said quietly, casting a despairing look at the innocent puppy who was busy eating a bowl of salad in his cage.

"Yes. Apparently, it's prohibited. I mean, what the fuck? What do they suggest I do with the poor puppy? Chuck him out? Leave him in a homeless animal shelter? Put him up for adoption? Chrissakes."

Naomi went silent. And in that silence, a brilliant thought seemed to pop into her brain. "I've got an idea," she said, biting her lip. "Perhaps he can stay in Misaki's apartment? We could just pop round every day after class to check up on him and bring him food. Take him out for a jog on weekends . . ."

My frown broke into a smile. "Right," I said thoughtfully. "You're right. That would be okay, wouldn't it?"

"Of course. I don't think Misaki will see that as a problem."

"And you won't see it as a problem?"

Naomi's expression was instantly severe. "Ems . . ."

"Okay, okay," I said, smirking. "I'm just joking. It's just surprising that you, of all people, would suggest that."

"Babe, you know the deal," she said soberly, "I see you fooling around with other girls and you're out of this room and out of my life. No plea bargaining. No gift-giving. No sweet-talking. No peace-offering of Fitch salad. You can kiss my eye."

I lifted my brows. "So I have the option to kiss your eye?"

Her mouth turned down at the corners. "Emily."

"I know, I know," I said quickly. "And the same deal applies to you." I then stood up from the bed, smiled sweetly, and moved toward her with a bit difficulty. "I love you."

Naomi softened then. "I love you, too," she echoed, moving toward me.

We stood looking at each other, giggling giddily. And it was just so easy. Easy to be with Naomi. Easy to be happy with Naomi. Easy to be happy in love with Naomi. I reached toward my fair queen and drew her to me. I kissed her softly, and then longer and deeper. "But for the record I don't think you have to worry about me," I murmured.

Naomi pulled back a little to look down into my eyes. "Ah, yea? Why's that?"

"Because I'm fucking whipped. I'm Campbell-whipped. It's insane."

"You're insane." She kissed my cheek tenderly. "And I'm Fitched. Insanely Fitched. And proud of it."

I let out a long, happy breath. "We're just insane freaks."

Naomi nodded. "Insane joined-at-the-hip freak of nature." We came together again in an intense twelve-cannon, guns firing, all-out kiss.

When the blonde released me, she asked softly, "Will we ever get tired of this?"

"I don't know about you," I said, "but I'd say, for me, that's a no."

She grinned and kissed my curving lips. "I like your answer."

"Teasing between lovers is healthy for the relationship, you know," I told her, sliding my hands down to curve on her hips. "It adds intimacy. And excitement."

The blonde arched her brows provocatively. "Really?"

"Really."

Naomi then took one step backward, then another. "Well, then, come on, babe," she called with a teasing, challenging gaze. "You have to run and catch me if you can."

"Naomi," I called with a grunt of pain, raising my left foot and pointedly gazing down at it. "Does this make you feel a hint of mercy?"

Her blithe expression didn't change. "No. If you want me in that hot tub with you, you have to come get me."

"What about your promise? No more running away?" I reminded her.

She looked at me blankly, feigning ignorance. "What promise?"

"You're going to kill me, Campbell," I said through clenched teeth, and the blonde burst into a fit of giggles.

Still giggling, Naomi then raced for the door. "Come get me and I'm yours, babe," she sang out in the doorway. "Now that's a promise." Then she spun and disappeared out of the room.

Staring at the open door, I chuckled but made no move to race after her since there was no chance in catching her, given my current state. Oz was barking madly in his cage, desperately wanting to join the fun. My eyes almost welled up with tears when the thought of being away from the Westie floated in my consciousness. I thrust that particular worry aside for the moment and just decided to focus on my physical self-therapy session.

I pivoted around and started toward the couch when I heard Naomi call from the hallway outside. "Come on, Emily Fitch! Prove to me you're not useless!"

That was what did it, really.

I hurried toward the open door, stepped out of it quickly, knowing I'd wrenched my foot but the pain was eclipsed by my own wildly thundering heartbeat from all the excitement.

Naomi was gone. I started down the hallway, high on adrenaline and with the sole aim of capturing my ill-behaved queen to give her some good spanking, but was suddenly stopped short when a splash of cold water greeted my face.

A few metres ahead Naomi was slumped against the kitchen doorframe, helpless with laughter. "Fitch, you're too slow. Sorry, I just had to wake you up."

I swiped the liquid off my cheeks, then cocked my head to the side as I shot her a severe, threatening look. "I'm going to make you very sorry, Campbell."

She only laughed. "You can try."

I bolted at top speed toward her, hardly even conscious of my own disability. With a squeal of surprise, Naomi quickly spun around and took off. We darted down the hallway, around a corner, and down the stairwell, trailing watery footprints and uncontrollable laughter.

Naomi pushed open a door and burst into the lounge. I crashed out the door and into the crowded room, on Naomi's heels. The blonde sprinted toward the other exit over at the opposite side of the room, trying to catch her breath through bursts of giggling.

I stopped in the middle of the busy room, panting wildly, oblivious to the many dormers having some sort of a massive group study session. I knew I had to find a way to make the blonde stop. I felt an impish smile steal over my face as an idea came to mind.

"Naomi Campbell got me pregnant!" I shouted at the top of my lungs in the packed lounge, shocking myself. Heads swiveled toward me and the runaway blonde.

Naomi stopped short and the laughter died in her throat. Slowly then she turned around, her eyes wide, her cheeks redder than normal.

I saw a dorm janitress slide her gaze down to my stomach. I awkwardly gave a half shrug and mumbled, "Well, erm, the baby's only three months old so it's not so obvious." I patted my tummy and ventured a smile.

The room suddenly became oddly silent with half stunned amusement, half stunned surprise. Then I started giggling. I covered my mouth to prevent a complete, hysterical laughter.

Some Japanese girls in the lounge seemed about to actually consider my little announcement as factual, and that made me laugh even harder.

Naomi's jaw tightened and she was now staring at me through narrow, dagger-shooting eyes. She stared at me so long without giving a clue to what she was planning to do to get even with me. Despite the mirth of the situation, my heart lurched with a bit of terror. Swiftly I swiped the tears of hilarity from my eyes and unconsciously took one step backward, then another. _Uh-oh._

Light shone on Naomi's blue eyes and I could see the laugh lines bracketing them. "Fitch, you better run for your life now," she warned with a naughty smirk, then starting after me as I made a dash for the door, she shouted out, "I'm going to fucking get you really pregnant!"


End file.
